Portland legislators take town hall meeting to the people by bike

In an effort to keep things in their districts rolling smoothly, Rep. Michael Dembrow and Sen. Jackie Dingfelder, both Portland Democrats, are hosting their first town hall on wheels.

The two state legislators, who both represent parts of Northeast, will lead a bicycle tour through the Cully neighborhood on Saturday and the public is invited.

Dembrow, a longtime bike commuter and the chief organizer of the event, thought it would be a good way to reach people who don't usually come to town hall meetings.

"One of the hardest things about my job is coming down to Salem every day and not being able to bike to work," says the first-term legislator. "At the same time, one of the great things is meeting constituents, so this is a way of bringing the two together."

The six-mile tour starts at 9:30 a.m. at Wilshire Park, Northeast 33rd Avenue and Skidmore Street. Riders will stop at Rigler School Community Garden at 54th Avenue and Prescott for a brief work party. They also will tour the area on Cully Boulevard between Prescott and Killingsworth streets, where a proposed cycle track, a bike lane that is physically separated from vehicular traffic, may be installed in 2010 as part of a major road improvement project.

The ride is scheduled to end at Hacienda Community Development Corp. on Northeast Killingsworth, where participants can learn about the Micro Mercantes economic initiative and purchase freshly cooked tamales for lunch.

Don't have a bicycle to ride? No worries. Pedal Bike Tours is offering bikes free of charge to those who want to participate in the town hall. Contact Pedal Bike Tours at 503-916-9704.

For more information or to RSVP for the town hall on wheels, contact Dembrow's Salem office at 503-986-1445.